


Undercover

by Qwerty_Hargreeves_25



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Diego Hargreeves is Bad at Feelings, Drabble, Flash Fic, Fluff, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Light Angst, M/M, Prompt Fic, Undercover Missions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-18
Updated: 2019-04-18
Packaged: 2020-01-15 18:11:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18504364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Qwerty_Hargreeves_25/pseuds/Qwerty_Hargreeves_25
Summary: Klaus has been undercover for months, and Diego is worried about him. What happens when they finally get a chance to meet?A soft little ficlet based on the promptsGARDEN, UNDERCOVER/SPIES, and INTIMACY.





	Undercover

**Author's Note:**

> Flash fic, the premise is that the Academy is grown, but for whatever reason never broke up and Reginald continues to send them on missions into their adulthood.

The smell of jasmine hung heavy in the air as the leaves crinkled against each other in the stiff breeze. Diego pulled his jacket tighter around his shoulders, looking up into the starry night sky. 

  

Klaus should be here soon. 

He hadn't seen the other man in months, and even then only for a few stolen moments in the back of a shop when they had happened to bump into each other. They couldn't stay for long, the risk to their cover had been too great, but even that small glimpse was enough to twist Diego’s stomach into knots. Klaus looked like hell. How much of that was real and how much artificial? 

Klaus was a master at appearing to be something that he was not, it was what had earmarked him for the job. It's what earmarked him for every job. But there was something more there, something playing around his eyes that said that the mission wasn't going as well as expected. There was a hollowness, a shadow behind his eyes that haunted Diego late at night. 

The crunch of gravel beneath a shoe dragged Diego back into the present. The heavy reek of pot filled the air. Klaus had lost weight. He had always been slender, but now his dark eyes were huge in his face, cheeks hollowed slightly beneath the Kohl smudged lashes. 

“Hey Di.” Klaus murmured, twisting his hands. He didn't take the seat next to Diego, instead standing opposite, even though the ridiculously tall platform heels must have been killing him. He looked nervous. He looked like he was craving a hit.

“Klaus, ” Diago said softly, holding out a hand to the other man. His gut clenched tightly when Klaus simply wrapped his arms tighter around himself, fingers digging harshly into the thin black material. 

Diago stood, walking slowly towards the other man. “It’s been a while. Are you okay?” Diego had no doubt in his mind that Klaus was still fully capable of taking him down in six inch platforms if he wanted to. Diego just hoped that he didn't want to. 

“I think I have almost everything. Let Dad know that Augusta and Maurice are going to be moving out at the end of the week. They are expecting a big shipment any day, and if we can catch them in the act, there will be plenty of evidence for a conviction.”

Diego nodded, committing the information to memory. “I will pass it along. But what about  _ you? _ Klaus, you look like hell warmed over.”

“Me?” Klaus smiled with a disturbing flatness, reaching up to brush one of the unruly curls from his face. They were much longer now than he ever let them get while he was still at the Academy.“Fine, fine, yeah, I’m fine.”

 

The movement caught Diego’s attention and he reached out to grip Klaus’s fingers gently. Klaus froze, eyes wide as Diego pushed the sleeve up past Klaus’s wrist. “What is this?” he asked.

“Its nothing.” Klaus responded, but he didn't attempt to pull his hand away as Diego inspected him.

“It doesn't look like nothing. It looks like rope burns.” Diego said, voice deceptively soft, as he studied the red rawness twisting around Klaus’s wrist and forearm before disappearing under his sleeve. “How far do they go?”

Klaus shrugged. “It was nothing. Things got a little hairy at one point. I handled it.”

“I h-hate this.” Diego said, fingers gentling to soothe at the wounds, taking a moment to gather himself and calm his breathing before continuing. “You shouldn't have to do it.” 

Klaus softened, shoulders rounding as he leaned forward to press his forehead to Diego’s own. “Hey now, none of that. The mission is almost over, and then I’ll get to come home. We can get that Indian food you like, and you can update me on everything that's happened.” Fingers soothed across Diego’s neck, and he hated,  _ hated  _ that Klaus was the one comforting him. 

“It doesn't matter.” Diego muttered. “Dad will send you out again. He always sends you out again. He hates it, when we can be together.”

“Di,” Klaus said firmly, tilting the other man's head up to force Diego to meet his eyes. “This is it. This is the last one. I'm done.”

Diego blinked, eyes disbelieving. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that I'm leaving. I'm leaving the Academy, and I'm not going back. No more missions, no more months undercover, no more getting beat half to hell because some lead didn't work out right. I’m walking away from it all.”

“All of it?” Diego asked, mind spinning with possibilities. 

“Well,” Klaus smiled slightly, eyes crinkling with a mischief that eased something deep in Diego’s chest. “Most of it.”

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope you enjoyed this little break from our regularly scheduled soul wrenching, heart breaking angst. I figured that the brave souls that follow me deserve some softness and goodness while we are still deep in the bad times in Becoming Klaus. Please let me know in the comments what you think!!
> 
> This is a flash fic, written in one forty-five minute sprint. The nature of the flash fic is that the time you have is the time you have, so it was not beta'ed past that point. That said, if you see something that obviously makes no sense at all, please let me know and I'll take a look at it!!
> 
> Thanks again for reading, see you next time!


End file.
